a.k.a. kouzinovia – a greek word describing a female person who lives in the kitchen. Always.

Sweet Potato and Nut patties

It all started when the master of all foods, Yotam Ottolenghi, posted on Instagram a photo of the most amazing sweet potato and peanut patties. #testkitchen read the caption, which meant no recipe just yet. But I was challenged! And intrigued. So I grated, I chopped, I mixed, I fried and tasted.

I liked the idea of adding nuts so I went a bit overboard. I mixed in sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and buttery pistachios. I spiced things up with some cumin, coriander and cinnamon. I added chickpeas cause I like them so much and bulgur wheat to absorb all the flavours. It might seem like a recipe with a lot of ingredients, but it sure works. I’m no Ottolenghi, but these are good!

Ingredients

2 cups sweet potato, peeled and grated on the thin side of the grater (from one large)

½ cup cooked chickpeas, drained from a can

¼ cup fine bulgur wheat

½ cup fresh coriander, finely chopped

2 Tbs mint, finely chopped

2 spring onions, sliced

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

2 TBs pumpkin seeds

2 Tbs sunflower seeds

2 Tbs pistachios, roughly chopped

3 Tbs tahini paste

1 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

¼ tsp cinnamon

2 eggs

Olive oil for shallow frying

Method

Put grated sweet potato in a large bowl. Chop the chickpeas with a large knife or coarsely grind them in a small chopping processor. Add them to the bowl along with the rest of the ingredients, except the olive oil. Mix well with your hands.

Let the patty mixture rest, covered in the fridge for 2 hours, preferably over night.

When ready to cook, shape about 2 tablespoons of the mixture into round patties. You will make about 16 patties.

In a frying pan, heat about ½ cup of olive oil, over medium heat. Shallow fry the patties, about 2 minutes per side until golden and cooked. Don’t attempt to turn the patty early as it could break. Once it’s golden on one side, turn it over.